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X-Prize Cup/Olympics Planned
sckienle writes "Space.com has a quick article in their astronotes section about the X-Prize committee's idea of an X-Prize competition. Apparently they are thinking about having a 'X-Prize Cup' where 'teams would compete for cash prizes, attempting to set new records.' My favorite quote: 'The notion is to try and bring the money and excitement of NASCAR and Formula One racing into space.'"
I think its ideas like this that the current space program needs to reawaken peoples interests in Space exploration, especially after the last few months and the negative attention it has recieved.
It's hard enough to remember my opinions, never mind the reasons for them..
I hope their not trying to bring the exact same type of excitement as NASCAR. Most of the people there are just waiting for a big crash to watch.
Devil Ducky
MY peers would get out of jury duty.
With the latest Guiness craze (anyone willing to do the dumbest, most dangerous stuff to get their names in the book), I'm afraid to make space the next competition. Yeah, they put their lives in danger, which is no biggie by me... cleanse the gene pool...
But what happens when someone's custom-made SaturnV crashes into your house?
Good quote, too many chars. Seriously, the slashdot 120 char limit sucks!
This reminds me of the air competitions in the 20's and 30's, normally funded by wealthy newspaper owners. Cash prize for the first to cross the Atlantic East to West, then in reverse. First to Hawaii, around the world, etc.
If not for some of those competitions, aviation would have progressed much slower than it did.
I don't think I totally agree with this. Part of the point of the X-Prize is finding the cheapest way to space, not necessarily the fastest way to space. Remember: good, cheap, fast, pick two. If we pick cheap and fast, we get deathtraps.
I'd much rather see the X-Prize lead to something good and cheap that takes 2 days to get to orbit than have some over-engineered phallic symbol dominating the space race for the next 50 years.
Driving a non-air-conditioned, 400HP car in a circle at 150 mph for a few hours just slightly faster than the other two dozen guys in identical cars, however, does require skill.
Do you tailgate (less drag, more heat)? How long and with who? Which line through the banked corners is optimal right now (it'll change as the track gets dirty and your tires heat up/wear, not to mention different amounts of traffic at different levels)? How many times will you stop for gas? Change tires? Do you need to adjust the suspension?